Happy Tuesday! President Donald Trump’s budget was unveiled yesterday and there were some clear winners and losers: Soldiers did well, as did advocates of a border wall and new parents. But health programs, farmers and food stamp recipients didn’t fare as well. Here’s a look at who makes out better and who doesn’t. [Politico]
Topping the news: Citing her responsibility to protect Utah residents, Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski is suing the Inland Port Authority because it is unconstitutional and misuses city taxing and land-use powers. [Trib] [DNews] [Fox13] [ABC4] [KSL]
-> A bill dubbed “Lauren’s Law” in honor of murdered University of Utah student Lauren McCluskey failed in committee Monday. The bill would have penalized people who loaned their guns out negligently. The man who murdered McCluskey had borrowed the weapon from a friend. [Trib] [DNews] [Fox13] [ABC4] [KSL]
-> President Donald Trump’s budget would cut the Interior Department’s spending by 14 percent, speed up oil and gas exploration and slash money to preserve new land. Democrats say the bill is dead on arrival. [Trib]
Tweets of the day: @realDonaldTrump: “Making Daylight Saving Time permanent is O.K. with me!”
-> From @HuntsmanAbby: “I will always be a proud moderate. If it’s “meh” to listen to other points of view, champion compromise, and be more nuanced in my thinking, I’ll wear that badge proudly...behind many of our great presidents who put the better of this country before an extreme ideology.”
Happy Birthday: To Sen. Mitt Romney.
In other news: Rep. Karianne Lisonbee, one of the two lawmakers who spearheaded the effort to gut a bill that would have banned the practice of conversion therapy on minors, apologized to other members of the Legislature for creating “tension.” The debate escalated last week when someone dug up old comments on her Facebook page that suggested she believed a “homosexual lifestyle” may cause some to attempt suicide. [Trib]
-> Tensions are rippling throughout the Utah House and Senate over what will become of the tax reform proposal that disintegrated last week. Now House Republicans are proposing a new plan that would dramatically change what had been originally talked about. The plan has been dubbed a “skinny budget.” [Trib] [DNews] [Fox13] [KSL]
-> A fluoride pump that malfunctioned and pooled into the water system last month in Sandy set off a chain of adverse events and launched several investigations into what happened and why. Records obtained by The Tribune now show residents filed more than 20-small damage claims in wake of the damage. [Trib]
-> A committee killed a bill that would have opened the door to importing prescription drugs from Canada, medication that is far more expensive in the United States, because of warnings issued by pharmaceutical industry representatives. They warned lawmakers about potential challenges the bill could face under federal law. [Trib]
-> With the dawn of this year’s legislature session drawing nearer, Utah lawmakers are rushing a bill through the system that would secure a $1.6 billion dollar loan for transportation projects — a plan heartedly supported by the Utah Department of Transportation. [Trib]
-> The Senate Transportation Committee voted to hold a bill that would have Utah following in the footsteps of 19 other states by only requiring cars to have one license plate rather than two. [Trib]
-> Another bill died on Capitol Hill Monday — a piece of legislation that would have in theory created more tax equity between car sharing firms and traditional vehicle rental companies. [Trib]
-> Only just introduced last week, members of the Senate Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment Committee voted in favor of a bill that would transfer a “throughput infrastructure fund” to the Utah Office of Energy Development with ease rather than be slowed down by a traditional vetting process. The culmination of this could be $53 million of state residents’ money thrusted into a deep-water export terminal on the West Coast. [Trib]
-> Lawmakers from the Senate Government Operation Committee blocked a bill Monday afternoon that would have hampered rural counties by limiting them to a three-person commission government rather than the more expansive leadership forms allocated to larger areas. [Trib]
-> The Tribune obtained an email from the Salt Lake Chamber inviting a rail company to come to Utah to sit on a committee made up of a multitude of businesses to discuss the inland port project. It is now sparking controversy. [Trib]
-> Utah lawmakers passed a bill that secures Utah Transit Authority's name and aids electric, hybrid car owners by lowering higher registration fees on the stipulation they volunteer to test out taxes on miles. [Trib]
-> A Senate committee passed along a bill that would create a commission to review the state flag and potentially recommend alternative designs. [Trib]
-> The Utah House passed a bill to add an 86-percent tax on e-cigarettes. The legislation will go before the Senate next. [Trib]
-> Tribune columnist Robert Gehrke unpacked what happened with the planned major tax overhaul that dissolved last week and shared a few insights about why he believes that happened. [Trib]
Nationally: President Donald Trump’s budget for 2020 shattered records as it arrived in Congress’s lap on Monday. The budget is the largest in history at $4.75 trillion, much of which calls for increased military spending and cuts environmental protections and domestic programs like Medicaid. [NYTimes] [Politico] [WaPost]
-> House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told Washington Post Magazine that impeaching President Trump is not worth it as it would divide the country even further. Her strong stance was received differently by other Democratic leaders with some looking at it more favorably than others. [NYTimes] [Politico] [WaPost]
-> Education Secretary Betsy DeVos declared on Monday that the government will no longer prevent religious organizations and groups from providing educational services in private schools that are funded by Congress. [NYTimes]
-> Sarah Sanders, the White House press secretary, answered reporter questions on Monday in a news conference that ended up trending on Twitter throughout the day. During the meeting, Sanders sidestepped questions about whether Trump believes Democrats hate jews. [Politico] [WaPost]
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-- Thomas Burr and Sahalie Donaldson
